I found these Switzer’s Chewy Cherry Twists on a trip to Cracker Barrel. I went there specifically to candy hunt, as it’s been years since I’d gone to one, and I had completely forgotten they have a “country store” attached to the restaurant. They had lots of classic candies I am familiar with, like GooGoo Clusters, Skybars and MoonPies (although not a candy in my book, yes I see them often grouped as such). But when I laid my eyes on these Switzers Twists, I stopped dead in my tracks. As long as I’ve been doing these candy reviews (going on 5 years now) it’s uncommon I find something that I hadn’t seen before, much less never heard of. These Switzers Twists were news to me, and therefore I scooped some up faster than you could blink.

Looking at the website to find more about these Twists I found they make other flavors too (the Lemonade ones look interesting). I nabbed the only two varieties I saw at the store, the Cherry and the Licorice. Taking the cherry ones out of the bag, I got a nice aroma of sweetness and a vague fruity smell. The pieces are gorgeous to look at and play with. They have a soft feel and are extremely glossy and smooth, with those sweeping ridges that curl their way up the pieces.

The flavor is elusive at first, you really have to start chewing in order for it to show up. It’s sweet with a light cherry “red” flavor that isn’t too strong. It has some metallic notes to it, and it gets stronger as you chew. The texture is very chewy, much more so than a Twizzler. I think it’s a nice texture, as it doesn’t dissolve too quickly nor does it tire my jaw.

I liked these better than Twizzlers, as I felt they were a tad more flavorful and the texture was much nicer. But they’re still not my thing. If you’re into this type of candy, I’d say they’re worth a try.